Radiation Oncology

Our expert team treats more than 3,600 patients a year and offers the most advanced radiation therapy available today, finely targeting radiation to tumors with more precision than ever before.

Radiation Oncology Treatments Options

We offer several types of radiation therapy, including but not limited to what is listed below. External Beam Radiation Techniques

CyberKnife
Proton Therapy
Image-Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT)
Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT)
Three-Dimensional Conformal Radiation Therapy (3D-CRT)
Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS)
Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT)

Internal Radiation Therapy Techniques (Brachytherapy)

Your care team will choose the technology that is best for you and customize your care to achieve the best outcome. You may also have opportunities to participate in a clinical trial evaluating a promising new radiation therapy approach or application.

Not all listed services are available at all locations. Please confirm when you make an appointment.

Additional Radiation Oncology Approaches

In addition to external beam radiation and brachytherapy, several technologies, programs and treatment options are available to provide you with a personalized plan that fits your needs.

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The rapid intravenous injection of a contrast agent is a major advancement over conventional manual delivery and enhances the diagnostic quality of simulation scans, which are the anchor of radiation planning.

This advanced imaging method makes CT scans more precise than ever before. 4D CT uses a new technology that captures the location and movement of a tumor. The information from the 4D CT scan allows the radiation therapy team to design more precise treatments for tumors in locations where they tend to move during treatment. This reduces the risk of treatment-related side effects and allows for the use of higher, more effective radiation levels while minimizing the impact on healthy tissue.

Gamma Knife® Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS) is a noninvasive, same-day procedure to treat cancerous and noncancerous tumors of the brain and skull base, as well as other neurological disorders, while preserving healthy brain tissue. An alternative to traditional “open” brain surgery or whole-brain radiation, Gamma Knife provides accurate, radiation treatment for single or multiple brain lesions and brain disorders — with no incision and little to no side effects.

How does Gamma Knife SRS work?

Gamma Knife SRS uses precisely targeted high-dose radiation beams to treat brain and skull base tumors, as well as other brain disorders including arteriovenous malformation, essential tremor and trigeminal neuralgia.

Treatment steps include:

Fitting for a customized, lightweight head frame, if required. The head frame ensures that the radiation beams target the precise treatment area and help to keep the head still during the procedure.
Hackensack Meridian Health also offers frameless Gamma Knife treatment - which does not require the use of a head frame - for select patients.
Imaging using MRI or CT technology. Imaging scans determine the exact size, shape and position of the treatment area.
Personalized treatment planning. Your physician will develop a treatment plan using a specially designed computer that calculates the best way to deliver the radiation treatment.
Automated, painless treatment. The fully awake patient reclines on a moveable treatment table while the machine rotates to deliver radiation from various positions.
Return to normal routines. Although some patients will need to stay overnight for observation, most can go home immediately and experience only minor side effects, if any.

What are the benefits of Gamma Knife?

The main benefit of Gamma Knife is that it can be a safer alternative to traditional “open” brain surgery or whole-brain radiation, which come with a higher risk of side effects or complications. Other benefits include:

Noninvasive. No incisions are necessary, meaning that patients do not require general anesthesia and are not at risk of hemorrhage, infection, or other complications that can occur during open brain surgery.
Enhanced efficiency. Unlike traditional radiation treatments, patients who receive Gamma Knife SRS typically require only one outpatient treatment. Exclusively used for treatment of the brain. Gamma Knife is the only SRS system specifically designed and optimized to treat brain lesions and disorders.
Unparalleled accuracy. The Gamma Knife radiation beams conform to the shape of the lesion, delivering high-dose treatment with sub-millimeter accuracy.
Fewer side effects. Gamma Knife’s precision spares healthy brain tissue from radiation exposure, reducing the risks of side effects. Many patients experience only mild side effects, or no side effects at all.

Commonly treated conditions include:

Acoustic neuroma
Arteriovenous malformation (AVM)
Brain metastases
Essential tremor
Glioblastoma
Meningioma
Pituitary adenoma
Trigeminal neuralgia
Vestibular schwannoma

Locations

JFK University Medical Center 65 James Street Edison, NJ 08820 732-321-7540

Hackensack University Medical Center 30 Prospect Avenue Hackensack, NJ 07601 551-996-2000

Radiation therapy with prone breast positioning is where the patient lies face down on a specially designed table for optimal patient positioning. Radiation is then administered with the breast hanging away from the body. Utilizing the prone breast method decreases radiation exposure to healthy tissue and nearby vital organs, such as the heart and lungs. This therapy is beneficial for women with larger breasts.

Hypofractionated radiation therapy allows eligible patients to receive a higher dose of radiation delivered over a shorter overall treatment course, reducing the number of weeks you need to come in for treatment.

Electron therapy is delivered through our linear accelerators, typically to lesions on the skin. Electrons are particles with a negative charge. Electron beams cannot travel very far through body tissues. Therefore, their use is limited to tumors on the skin or near the surface of the body.

TBI complements our Bone Marrow Transplantation service at John Theurer Cancer Center and improves the conditioning regimen over chemotherapy alone. Hackensack Meridian Health is a leader among only a few medical centers in New Jersey that offer this treatment.

“I was determined. I felt as though John Theurer Cancer Center solved the problem as quickly as it could have been done.”

Melvin Taylor - Lifetime musician and cancer survivor

Our Doctors

John Theurer Cancer Center offers the best customized care and technology in radiation therapy to achieve and provide you with the best outcome.

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Why Choose John Theurer Cancer Center for Radiation Therapy

Innovation

We have a history of leading radiation therapy in New Jersey. The Department of Radiation Oncology at John Theurer Cancer Center at Hackensack University Medical Center was the first center in the state to offer stereotactic radiosurgery (a non-surgical option) for the treatment of brain tumors.

Advanced Care

We were also the first medical center in New Jersey to offer TrueBeam® image-guided radiation therapy, a radically different approach to treating even the most challenging cancers with unprecedented speed and accuracy. This technology is now offered throughout the network.

Patient Experience

John Theurer Cancer Center has affiliate locations across the state, providing you with access to advanced radiation therapy options conveniently located close to home.

Excellence

The cancer surgeons at John Theurer Cancer Center perform more minimally invasive cancer surgeries than any other center in New Jersey.

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Radiation Oncology

Radiation Oncology Treatments Options